The Daughter
by NorseFan1
Summary: The adoption of one of the Potter Twins will change the fate of the young girl drastically. Father daughter relationship between Loki and FemHarry. Rated T for safety.
1. The Adoption

**Disclaimer: I own Nothing!**

**A/N: This is another fic I already have up on AO3, and I'm moving it over so it's on both sites.**

**Chapter 1**

Lily Potter looked down at the small baby girl in her arms as she sat in the coffee shop in the heart of muggle London. She felt the Oroborous pendant hanging around her neck and the power stored inside it. It was due to the pendant that she had survived that night, and thanks to Voldemort's 'purebloods are better' spiel, he had only stunned James, hoping to convert him afterwards probably. But, somehow, their two children had mysteriously survived the attack, and sent Voldemort's killing curse back at the evil wizard.

When the two Potters had woken up, they realised how they had both survived, but it took talking with Dumbledore to figure out how their children had survived and how Voldemort was gone. Lily had been unaware that her necklace and the power locked within it would save her life from the most lethal of curses, but it had. And not only that- because she had willingly sacrificed herself for her children, her love, and the love her son, Hadrian, had for her daughter, Emma, his twin, his magic had protected them, combined with an ancient magic. But Albus was sure that Voldemort wasn't gone for good, and so they would need to focus on protecting and training Hadrian. Therefore, Emma needed to be with someone who could take care of her properly while they focused on Hadrian.

James and Albus had suggested Lily's adoptive sister, but she knew Petunia wouldn't treat her daughter correctly. And she couldn't bear to hand her over to someone in the wizarding world and risk seeing someone else raising her daughter. So, that left one option open to her. She had to contact the one person that she had sworn she would never see again. She had been unsure about it when she came up with the option, but when they heard it, James and Albus both agreed that it was probably the best option, but she was still unsure, and she was thinking furiously on how she could get him to agree, if he took her, that she would be able to still have contact with her daughter, her and James. She was unaware of anyone approaching her until someone stopped at her table.

"Hello Sigyn." A smooth, cold, voice said. She looked up.

* * *

><p>Loki stopped outside the small café and rolled his eyes. "I know you are following me Captain." He said.<p>

Captain Steve Rogers sighed and stepped up. "Well, you can't expect to just be able to walk off on your own after what you've done."

"I assure you I have no intentions of world domination again. You can come in with me if you want to make sure I am speaking the truth- instead of unsuccessfully scouting from outside, or another booth." With that, he entered the café and walked towards a table that a red haired woman was sat at, a baby carrier on the floor next to her, a bundle in her arms. Steve followed him carefully; weary of what the god might be up to. Loki stopped at the table.

"Hello Sigyn." He said in a cool tone, his face impassive.

Her head snapped up and her forest green eyes met his emerald green eyes. "Loki. Thank you for agreeing to come. Take a seat." She motioned to the booth opposite her. He sat down and the large blonde man took the seat next to him, looking rather uncomfortable. "Who is your friend?"

"This is Captain Rogers." Loki said curtly, before cutting straight to the matter at hand. "What do you want, Sigyn?"

She looked back down at the baby in her arms. The child had just woken up and was looking round with bright green eyes. "My husband and I… we need your help."

"And why should I help you? If I am not mistaken, we severed ties when you decided to leave and become mortal and learn their magics."

"I know but… we cannot look after our daughter."

"And you are hoping I will take her? Why? Why would I do that? Why even come to me in the first place? Didn't you intend to reverse your age and become a part of a mortal family? Can they not take her?"

"My parents are dead and my sister wants nothing to do with me."

"A feeling I share with her then." He snapped.

Sigyn seemed to be holding in a retort, and then she finally spoke after letting out a long, calming breath. "If Emma stays with us, she will not grow up the way she should. Her twin brother is in danger and will need protection and, when he is older, training, and we won't be able to find enough time-"

"Oh so it is not because you _can't_ look after her, it is because you _won't_ look after her. Becoming mortal has addled your mind, Sigyn. You would never have favoured one child over another like this before. You would have treated them both equally. Or would you? I can see I have gotten off lightly now. Any children we would have had would have wondered why their mother did not care about them."

"It's not that I don't care for Emma! Hadrian needs the extra attention. He's the subject of a prophecy."

"So? What right does that give you to decide he is more important than your daughter?" Loki asked. But he knew that if he left the child with Sigyn, the girl would grow up in the shadow of her brother… much as he had. The girl would end up bitter and lonely and Loki knew all too well how those feelings could consume someone. If he took the girl, the downside would be that he would be doing Sigyn a favour, but on the upside… she didn't look too sure about this, and this was his chance to have a child that Odin couldn't claim was a threat to Asgard. Her mother had been Ӕsir, and even if Loki performed a blood adoption ritual, that wouldn't change. She would be his daughter. He could raise her as his. He could prove to himself at least that he could be better than even Odin in one aspect. He could be a better father to the girl than Odin ever had been to him.

Steve on the other hand, was speechless. This woman was just ready to abandon her daughter? And to Loki. He couldn't believe what was happening. Steve's eyes widened slightly as Loki held his arms out towards Sigyn.

"Let me see the child Sigyn." He said.

Sigyn handed the girl to Loki. "It's Lily now actually."

Loki simply sneered as he took the baby and looked down at her. He reached out with his magic and felt a great well within the child. That would surely increase when she gained immortality, but, she would be nowhere near as powerful as him, even if he did decide to go through with the blood adoption, unless… he looked up at Lily.

"I will take her, but if I do, understand this- she will be my daughter. I will raise her as if she were my own. Once I leave this café with her, that is it, no turning back from your decision, and no reversing it."

Lily nodded, her throat constricting. She had known that this was a bad idea, but she had promised James that if Loki was willing to take care of Emma, she would not return with the child today. James thought it would be best for a clean break, at least for now. "I understand." She said.

He looked at her for a moment. "I am unsure about whether that is true… but you will in time. One more thing, when you became mortal, the power you held as one of the Ӕsir was stored within that pendant." He pointed to the pendant around her neck. "You were able to maintain the magic of a witch, but you do not need the necklace to keep that power. The magic stored within the necklace would be better put to use than as simple decoration, would you not agree?"

"What would you use my power for?"

"Just because you have forsaken your birth right does not mean you should deny it to your daughter."

"You would make her immortal anyway, would you not?"

"Her power will still be far smaller than I would like. It would take longer to train her. If she is going to be my daughter, I want her to have the ability and the power to stand on her own if she needs to. To defend herself against any attacker. As it is, if she is simply made immortal, when she is older, her powers will be nothing compared to mine. Or others such as Amora for that matter. And you know how volatile she can be."

Lily cast a worried glance at Emma and unhooked the pendant from around her neck. She held it out and Loki took it before placing it in a pocket, Emma cradled in one arm easily. Lily pulled out a pen and a folder. "Let's get this over with then." She said, opening it up to reveal the necessary paper work. Loki sneered at it, but knew that validating his adoption of the child on Midgard may come in handy later on. He read all of it through using magic, without alerting Sigyn, to change parts of the agreement to suit himself. The original papers had said that the adoption would only last until she was eleven. That wouldn't do. Presumably, she and her husband had hoped that he wouldn't read the small print. They had already signed, so changing the words was easy enough, and she wouldn't realise until it was too late, and he had left with the child. There was even a part of the form that gave him the chance to rename the girl. If he was going to do this, he may as well run the full race, as they say. Under the pretence that he was still reading, he came up with a name for his new daughter. One fitting for a Princess of Asgard. He signed the necessary parts and quickly filled in the part renaming her, not giving Lily a chance to see it, or she would know something was wrong. He could sense the spell on the file, meaning that when the forms were completed and the file closed, the forms would be sent to the right places, and an adoption certificate and copy sent back to the file. He hid his smirk. The laziness of the magical population of Midgard concerning paperwork had just ensured his adoption of the child would never be argued against. At least, not successfully. He signed the last section, and closed the file. Then, he reopened it and slipped out the adoption certificate and closed the file again, sliding it back across the table to Lily who looked ready to cry.

"Don't look so upset, _Lily_." He put a scathing emphasis on the name. "I did warn you. And remember, you made this choice freely."

He stood up and, ignoring the carrier, left, after Steve moved out of the way. Steve shot a sad look back at Lily, unable to believe that she could just abandon her child in favour of another. Then, he followed Loki out.

* * *

><p>Lily picked up the file and slipped it into her bag. It was done. Thankfully, the paperwork was magically binding. She would see her daughter again in just under ten years' time. Making sure that no one was looking, she shrunk the carrier and stood, before leaving. She walked out and found a certain point before apparating home. When there she smiled sadly at James.<p>

"It's done." She said.

"He agreed? Well, at least we know she will be well taken care of. Hey, don't cry, we'll have her back when she's eleven."

"I'm not so sure James." Lily said.

"What do you mean?"

"I… Loki wanted the pendant to give my Ӕsir power to Emma. With her own power, plus that… She will be one of the more powerful sorceresses there."

"So?"

"Even though Asgardians favour strength physically, her magic will be great enough that she will not be granted the permission to do what I did. I think that was why he really wanted the pendant James. An Ӕsir of that strength… Odin would not block her powers. He would not make her mortal unless it was punishment."

"The contract is magically binding Lils." James said.

"I wouldn't put it past Loki to find a way out of it. He has ten years, after all. He's good at doing things like that in less time."

"It's air tight. Albus drew it up himself. Look, it'll be on the certificate, watch." He opened the file which was on the desk and as they both looked down at the certificate, they gasped, realising the truth.

"He even changed her name." Lily said looking at the name on the certificate under the name Emma Lily Potter. Kysa Lokidottir.

"How… how did he do this? We didn't sign this one. We _know_ we didn't."

"He must have used magic to change the forms to a permanent adoption." Lily said. "The trickster." Her laugh was hollow. "I should have known he was up to something while filling in those forms after his little speech about if he took her in then that was it. I should have known he would have noticed. I was betrothed to him at one point for goodness sakes! Oh James, what are we going to do now?"

"We'll figure something out Lily. I promise." James said.

* * *

><p>Back at the hotel penthouse suite that the Avengers and Loki were in due to a reconnaissance mission, Loki and Steve entered the living room area, where the team were gathered, including Pepper Potts and Jane Foster, who had been allowed to come along due to the length of the mission. That they could help create a believable alibi didn't hurt either. They all looked round when they both entered and the whole group froze when they registered what they were seeing.<p>

"Yeah." Steve said, "I'm having a hard time believing what just happened too, and I know the whole story." He moved into the room and poured himself a drink at the bar. Even though he couldn't get drunk, he knew he needed something strong to drink.

"Loki… where did the child come from?" Thor asked his brother.

Loki retold what had happened, about how Sigyn had not wanted to raise her daughter, and asked him to take her. He explained the encounter, or at least, the parts that Steve knew about. There was no need to mention he had changed what the forms had said, after all.

"Now, if you will excuse me, I want to make sure Kysa has her Ӕsir powers before we take her to Asgard."

"Didn't Sigyn, Lily, whatever, say her name was Emma?" Steve asked.

"There was an option on the forms for me to change her name. Sigyn will find out when she bothers to look at her copy of the adoption certificate." Loki said, before he headed into his room and closed the door behind him. Loki sat on the edge of the bed and looked down at the small girl cradled in his arms. "Let's give you your birth right, shall we little one?" He asked softly. She just looked up at him before she smiled and laughed. He smiled down at her as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the pendant. He began to murmur the spells that would awaken her Asgardian heritage, and when her full powers were released he seamlessly switched to the spells that would transfer the powers in the necklace into Kysa. When he was done, there was a soft golden glow surrounding her. It faded slowly. He smiled at her again. "Just one more thing to do Little Kysa. And then we shall see about getting you something to eat and anything else you will need." He said, before he drew out one of his smaller daggers and enchanted it so that when he made the cuts, it would not cause pain. He wouldn't have bothered, but he already felt protective over the small girl. She was his daughter, and he would not see her in pain. But, it was necessary to cut her with the runes, as well as himself, in order to complete the adoption. He began the spell and when the time was right, made the cuts on himself and her and mixed their blood together. This would also give her a slight boost to her magic, ensuring that she would be powerful when she was older. But the main reason was so that no one on Asgard could dispute his claim to raise her. Through the blood adoption, he would be her father, just as much as James Potter was. More so, seeing as he had _chosen_ to be her father. Whereas, Potter had chosen to give her up. And this time, if Odin did try to take her from him as he had Hel, Jormangandr and Fenrir, he wouldn't find it quite as easy.

When the spell was done, light surrounded Kysa again. This time, however, it was green, not gold. The wounds on both of them healed and he saw her dark brown, near black hair change to pure black, and her eyes changed from forest green to emerald green. For a moment, they flashed red, indicating the Jotun blood she now shared with him was active, but she would only be half Jotun thanks to her mother. How much that would show would be determined when she was older. When the glow faded, he looked up and around the room. Loki frowned.

"Well, this won't do. There is nowhere for you to sleep." He clicked his fingers and a moment later things had shifted subtly and a large dark wood crib was on one side of the bed. It was only after that last piece of magic that he realised that how tired he felt. Those spells had taken more energy than he had thought they would. There was a reason that the blood adoption was so rarely used. It was such a complete and final spell that it took a lot of magic to use. And many Asgardians did not like feeling so weak and drained. Neither did he, but it was a necessary evil. One he would put up with because of the end result- especially since he had ensured it couldn't be broken. Pushing the tiredness down for now, he stood and went back to the lounge. He looked at the clock and noticed that several hours had passed. Had he truly not noticed all that time passing?

"Jeez reindeer games, you've only just got the kid and you're already looking like you've missed three weeks of sleep." Tony said.

"I am still perfectly capable of killing you Stark, make no mistake about that."

"You wouldn't, you're holding your new daughter." _He_ had obviously come to terms enough with the situation in the past few hours.

"It would be an easy thing to put Kysa in her crib and then come out and kill you."

"Ah." He said, showing he hadn't thought of that. "But it would give me a running head start."

"Not much of one." Loki pointed out. Then, he noticed the bags of shopping in the corner of the lounge. He raised an eyebrow.

"You looked like you weren't coming out for a while, and seeing as you just brought Kysa and nothing for her, like food, clothes and diapers, we went out shopping for her." Pepper said. "Good thing too, all the shops would be closed by now."

Loki nodded his thanks and walked over to the bags.

"Brother, are you sure you are ready for the responsibility of a parent? You do not even have a wife. She will grow up without a mother."

"I will manage Thor. And I am sure our mother will be enough of one to Kysa that she will not feel the absence of her own growing up." Loki said, looking for the food. Kysa was starting to get restless and he was sure she was hungry.

Soon, the Avengers were treated to the spectacle of Loki feeding what was obviously one very hungry baby.

"Is… the big bad god of Mischief feeding a baby?" Clint asked snickering.

"I will shove this spoon so far up that you won't be able to see straight." Loki threatened.

"You'd have to dodge the arrows first." Clint replied. Then he quirked an eyebrow. "Is she on the second pot of that food?"

"With that appetite, Loki I think she's actually your niece." Tony laughed.

"It has been a few hours since she last ate, Stark. Plus, the adoption spells and the transition from mortal to Ӕsir are bound to have taken their toll on her." Loki said, shaking his head as Kysa took another spoonful which put the second pot of baby food as half empty- and then she spat it out- and giggled as Loki wiped it off his face.

"Oh yeah- Karma's a bitch. And your Karma just came round to bite you in the ass in the form of your new daughter." Clint laughed while most of the others laughed at the sight as well.

"Clint!" Natasha scolded. "Language around the baby! She's going to start picking up words like that if you aren't careful."

"I think someone's had enough." Pepper said, looking at Kysa. "It's getting late. You should probably change her and put her to bed."

Loki nodded. "If she'll behave."

"She's your daughter Loki. If you've blood adopted her, and I think you have, she's going to be trouble." Thor laughed.

"How did you guess?"

"You were in there for far too long to simply release her powers. Plus, you wouldn't want anyone trying to take her from you now you've decided to raise her. That would be the only way no one back home could contest you raising her."

Loki was surprised. It was rare that Thor had any moment of insight, but this was obviously one of those times.

"Blood adopted?" Bruce asked. "What's that, and how is that different from a regular adoption?"

"On Asgard, if someone has the magical power available to them, and is worried about someone contesting their guardianship of the child, then the one adopting the child can blood adopt them. It is a complex, and long, spell which includes the mixing of the blood of both the child and the new parent, or parents. Because of this, I am just as much Kysa's father now as the mortal who helped bring her into this world."

"Well, that would end custody battles." Bruce supposed.

"How come this isn't a regular thing with adoption?" Jane asked.

"It takes an inordinate amount of power, and most of the time, there is no issue over the custody of the child with adoptions. People do not see the need. Plus, the child can be no older than two years of age. Sometimes, a child is adopted when they are too old. Especially with the 'glory of battle' killing off their fathers and mothers either remarrying or killing themselves." Loki shook his head and stood up, picking Kysa up as he stood.

He changed Kysa in the en-suite bathroom attached to his room and then placed her in the crib next to his bed. Though he was tired, he mustered up the energy for a few final spells. One to alert him should someone enter the room, another to stop anyone who wasn't him teleporting in or out of the room and a third, a shield around Kysa's crib that would stop anyone who managed to get that far without him coming between them, from straight out taking her unless, once again, it was him. They would have to bring down the spell first. He didn't have the energy tonight to make exceptions from the spells, such as to take Thor or the others into account. He would just have to hope that should some disaster happen, he wouldn't be rendered completely unconscious and unable to be woken while the others were unable to get Kysa out. But, it was only for one night. He could alter his protections once he had regained his strength. Being sure that she was safe for the night, Loki changed and collapsed onto the bed, before falling fast asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please review!**


	2. Incidents, Asgard and Walking

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

**Chapter 2**

Loki awoke to crying and he shot up in bed. It had been a month since he had adopted Kysa, and she had always slept through the night, until now. He picked her up out of the crib. They were back in New York, at Stark tower, so he could have placed her in another room, but Loki still wanted to keep her near him. He had to protect her.

"What is wrong little Kysa? Why have you woken up in a bad mood?" He could tell she didn't need to be changed, and when he tried to give her a bottle, she wouldn't take it. So what was wrong? Suddenly the alarms in the building went off and Loki's grip on Kysa tightened. There was an intruder or intruders in the building, and Kysa had sensed it.

He grabbed the pouch sling that he had once scoffed at, realising that he may need both his hands, but he did not want to leave Kysa go in this situation. If she was with him, he could keep her safe, but he would need both hands in order to attack and defend, and cast more complex spells. He placed the sling around his chest and put her in the pouch before carefully leaving the room, alert for danger.

The Avengers were already awake and moving around, looking for the intruder in the penthouse.

"J.A.R.V.I.S perform a sweep of the entire tower and find whoever triggered the alarm." Tony said.

"Sir, I believe I have found two groups of intruders. One with hostile intent, and one without."

"How can you tell that?"

"The non-hostiles appear to be a group of four from Asgard, if the extra strength they are exhibiting and the armour they are wearing is anything to go by. The others are trying to force their way past and up the stairs. They are wearing hooded robes and are letting off bolts of energy that have vaguely similar energy patterns to Loki's magic, but nowhere near the strength or intricacy."

"It seems that mortal wizards may just be the intruders." Loki said, his face darkening. "Sigyn must be trying to go back on the adoption."

"So soon?" Steve asked, frowning.

"It is the only explanation." Thor said, heading for the stairs. "I will go down this way. The rest of you should take the elevator, and then we will have them trapped."

"I will remain up here. I do not want to take Kysa into a fight unless I have too. And I will not leave her alone." Loki said.

The others nodded. If the wizards were here for Kysa, someone would have to remain with her anyway. And Loki was probably the best bet, especially since the others did not trust him not to stab them in the back yet.

The others had been gone for ten minutes when a funnel of smoke landed on the landing pad that Tony normally used when coming in from his patrols as Iron Man. The smoke dispersed revealing a man in black robes and a skull mask. He strode into the penthouse.

"Give me the child." He demanded.

Loki's eyes narrowed. "Get behind me." He said to Jane and Pepper, knowing his power wouldn't differentiate between them and this mortal who had come for his daughter as his anger spiked.

As the two mortal women did so, the man moved forward. Loki, however, was sure that the man had not been sent by Sigyn. He was filled with hate. Kysa's cries picked up. She could sense it too. "I will allow you to live if you give me the child. She is all I want. The Dark Lord will praise me for killing the sister of the one who stopped him when he returns."

"No." Loki said, his voice as cold as ice as he watched the man walk towards him. Loki's eyes turned red, and the man stopped and gasped as he saw the change and watched as Loki's skin became blue and the markings of his Jotun heritage appeared. Ice spread out from Loki's feet, forwards and to the side, but not behind. The temperature of the room dropped drastically and the ice creeped up the man's feet, encompassing them, and then continuing up his legs, and body. The wizard panicked and started trying to blast the ice away from his body, and it might have temporarily worked, had the spell not blasted a part of the man's leg off and caused him to cry out in pain and drop his wand. The ice continued its path up the man's body, encompassing him and killing him from the cold. The ice had moved past him and moved up the windows as well, frosting them over. With the help of his magic Loki knew it took just over a minute for the man to die once the ice had completely covered him, not just from the cold, but also from asphyxiation.

"C-could y-you m-maybe p-put t-the h-heating b-b-back o-on p-please?" He heard Jane stammer. He turned round and saw that while they had been spared from the ice, the room was still cold, and the two women were clutching each other for warmth. He allowed the temperature to go back to normal and stopped manipulating the ice. His skin returned to its usual pale complexion and his eyes became green again. But the ice still remained, left to melt. He could remove it, and he probably would later.

Loki looked down at Kysa who was letting out a few hiccups, but was alright. He smiled softly down at her, glad she was no longer clearly upset. He knew the Jotun blood she shared with him had protected her from the cold. Especially this close to him.

Then, she lifted an arm up and placed her hand against his chin. "Daddy." She said once, before letting her hand fall back down. Her eyes closed, and she was asleep. Loki was frozen in place, looking down at the now sleeping Kysa. She hadn't said one word since he had adopted her and now… her first word had been to call him daddy.

"What happened here?" Steve asked as the others turned up again. They had brought the unconscious and bound wizards with them.

"He wanted to kill Kysa." Loki said, finally looking up. "This was not Sigyn's doing."

"Sigyn?" Sif asked. The four who had appeared, were, as he had assumed, Sif and the Warriors Three. "What would she have had to do with this?"

"She asked Loki to take her daughter in. The only reason we could think that wizards would attack right now was because she wanted her daughter back. Even though she basically abandoned Kysa for her son." Thor explained. "But why would they want to kill her?"

"The Dark Lord must be avenged!" One of the wizards had woken up and he was obviously angry. "And seeing as we cannot get to the brat who defeated him, we went after his twin. The Dark Lord will reward us for this when he returns. We who avenged him!" He slipped free of his bonds and jumped to his feet. He made to run at Loki, but his head jerked to the side and his neck snapped as Thor punched him.

"Anyone else want to make an attempt on my niece's life?" The few others who had woken up shook their heads, while their comrades remained unconscious.

"I thought Loki was just taking her in." Fandral said.

"Sigyn practically begged me to adopt her. So I did so. Completely. Not that Sigyn is aware that I have blood adopted her."

"That would be why the All-Father wishes to speak with you then." Volstagg said. "He was rather vague on the reason."

Thor and Loki exchanged a look. It was time. He had put off taking Kysa to Asgard. Hel being of his blood hadn't stopped her from being taken and cast into Helheim by Odin. But Kysa… she was different. There was nothing about her that the Ӕsir could object to, was there? And now… he couldn't deny it, he had bonded with Kysa much more than he had with Hel, Fenrir, Jormangandr or Sleipnir. He was going to raise her, no matter what anyone else thought. And he knew he had Thor's support in this too.

"Then we will leave for Asgard in the morning." Thor said. "But now, I think we should get this lot," He motioned to the wizards, "To holding cells. They can be interrogated later."

"Let me get this straight, Loki's adopted the daughter of Sigyn? I never thought you would do anything to help her, Loki." Volstagg said.

"All that matters is that it's done. Kysa is my daughter now. That is the end of the matter." Loki turned and left the room, and headed back to his own room, a flick of his hand ridding the lounge of ice. The wizard's body collapsed to the ground. Back in his bedroom he placed Kysa back in her crib. She stirred momentarily but did not wake. He stroked her cheek gently with one finger and smiled. Her first word had recognised him as her father. "I will always protect you little one. Even if I have to kill to ensure you are safe." He murmured, knowing she couldn't hear him, and even if she could, she wouldn't understand the promise he made her. But it was a promise he didn't intend to break.

* * *

><p>The next day found Loki, Thor, Sif and the Warriors Three taking both Kysa and Jane to Asgard for the first time. Loki did not put Kysa in the sling again, knowing he had no need of it today. While he would be on guard as it could take a wrong turn, he did not believe any confrontation would become so great that he would need both his hands.<p>

When they reached Odin's throne room, Thor introduced Jane to their parents first. She was accepted quickly, and Loki knew that she would be granted immortality. He could almost hear his mother's mind whirring with ideas and plans for the wedding. And then the attention turned to him and Kysa, who had remind amazingly silent and was looking round the room curiously.

"When Heimdal told me of what happened on Midgard between you and Sigyn, and subsequent events afterwards, I almost did not believe it, but now I can see that he spoke nothing but the truth." Odin said as he looked at his son and the child in his arms. "You really have blood adopted the child."

A murmur rippled through the court as he announced this. That was something none of them would think _Loki_ of all people would do. Obviously none of them thought he would ever make a suitable parent. But this would prove them wrong.

Loki nodded. "I blood adopted her the same evening that Sigyn abandoned her."

That caused another murmur among the members of the court. None of them would ever have thought Sigyn would abandon a child.

"Yes, Heimdal told me of that too. Are you ready to accept the responsibility of raising the girl as your own?"

"I am. I knew I was the moment I agreed to take her from Sigyn and then completed the blood adoption." Loki said.

Odin nodded. "Very well, if that is your choice. Now, may I hold my granddaughter?"

Wearily Loki handed Kysa to her grandfather, anticipating some sort of trick. It couldn't be this easy could it? Odin seemed to approve of Kysa, and Frigga cooed at her when she got a chance to hold her. After a while of Frigga holding her, Kysa got restless and she was handed back to Loki, where she grabbed his coat and pulled herself up so she was in more of a sitting position, and then continued to look around the room curiously, murmuring to herself in baby talk.

Loki allowed himself to relax slightly. If Odin was going to throw her out of Asgard, he would have given the order to do so already. And Frigga seemed to be attached to Kysa, so Loki thought she was safe for now. But, whenever he left Asgard, he would be sure to take her with him, just to be sure. At least, until he was absolutely sure his father wouldn't do anything to separate them.

Kysa had a nursery in the palace, and thankfully it was right next to his room. It was easy enough for him to use a spell and create a door in the wall between his room and the nursery. Then, he placed spells around the room, just like when they had been in the hotel. If anyone entered, he would be alerted, and he would know who it was, and if they left with Kysa. Loki was taking no chances with her safety.

Kysa, who was sat on the carpet watching him as he wandered the room, crawled over to the crib and used its leg to pull herself to her feet. He stopped where he was as he watched her toddle over to him and then smile up at him.

Loki smiled back down at Kysa. "That's my girl. Well done." He said, picking her up and holding her to his chest, still smiling. She laughed happily and her baby hands clutched at his coat. "Now, I believe it's time for your nap."

* * *

><p><span><strong>AN; What did you think?**


	3. Diagon Alley

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

**A/N: There is a substantial time skip in this one. I'm thinking of having a few flashbacks or explanations of her childhood as things go along. **

**Chapter 3**

Kysa woke up slowly, before sitting up in her bed and stretching. She yawned before remembering what today was when she saw the room she was in. Yesterday had been her eleventh birthday so they hadn't arrived at the tower until late due to the party at home. She got out of bed and quietly slipped out of the room and then slowly opened the door to her father's room. She crept inside, being careful not to wake him. He was, as she had suspected, still asleep. She grinned in a way that promised mischief. Thankfully for her father, she only wanted to wake him up, so in true childish fashion, she stepped back a few paces, took a running start, leapt and landed on the bed, her knees landing on the mattress right next to him, her chest falling over his upper torso as she overshot her landing slightly and tried to correct it. Loki shot up in bed, and Kysa laughed.

"Time to get up dad! We're going to England today! To the British mortal wizarding district!"

"You could not wake me in a normal fashion?" He asked. She laughed. "Oh you think it is funny?"

She made to jump off the bed, but he caught her round the waist and began to tickle her. The sounds of her shrieking with laughter woke the others in the penthouse of Stark tower up. This was actually a regular occurrence whenever the Asgardians visited the tower now. And none of them really cared. Kysa and her cousins were adored by all of the avengers. There was no doubt about it. There was something about the children that they just wanted to protect. That they had seen them grow up probably helped that fact, but it still stood- they all wanted to be a part of their lives whenever she and Thor's children visited Midgard with Kysa's father and uncle.

When they had finally gathered for breakfast, Kysa had calmed down slightly, but she kept fidgeting in her seat.

"Calm down Kysa, we will not be going to that shopping district until tomorrow." Loki said.

"Yes, but we're going to England _today_." She said, as if that was reason enough. "I've never been anywhere in England before." There was that. They had taken her to various places in America and then branched out to the rest of the world. She'd been to many places in France, Australia, Italy, Germany and Russia, but she had never been to anywhere in Britain. For one simple reason. The Potters.

"You won't be seeing much of it. It'll take the best part of twelve hours to fly there." Natasha said.

"But we're still going there today!" She argued. It was the same thing every time she was going somewhere new. Even if they would only be travelling there, she'd get excited, knowing that it was the start of the entire trip.

They used one of Stark's private jets to get to Heathrow Airport. It took a lot of work for them to keep Kysa occupied through the trip. It was times like these when she was a bundle of energy, and if they weren't careful, she could start letting off bursts of accidental magic. While she had Asgardian magic, and was able to wield it well, as well as her father could when he was her age, Kysa also had the magic that mortals used. That was something that she couldn't control as well. That was the reason that they were going to England. Kysa had gotten a place at Hogwarts School and they were taking her to get her school supplies and have her first glimpse at the mortal magical world. She wished her cousins had come, but they had chosen to stay in Asgard this time. She mentally shrugged. She would make the most of it. And they had promised to come see her off to school. They would probably be on Midgard within the week. It was just like them both to say no to coming and then want to come a few days later.

They were staying in the same hotel that they had been in when Loki had adopted Kysa, not that she knew that, of course. All she knew was that the group of adults had been there before. Of course, she also didn't know she was adopted but Loki knew that he would have to tell her the truth soon. He'd had let slip that her mother had gone to Hogwarts. Now, she was dead set on going, and he knew she would find out in the worst way possible. He had to tell her. Plus, he knew that leaving her live her life without the truth would also not work out. He had still not forgiven Odin for that one. He knew he would have preferred to have been told sooner. But… she still probably wouldn't take it all that well. He had tried to dissuade her. There were other schools. And then, he could tell her at the right time, and it wouldn't seem as if his hand had been forced about it.

Loki sighed as he watched her sit down to watch a film on the TV. He wished she would never have to know this, but at least she would have the net of knowing he had adopted her in blood.

Walking over to the sofa, he conjured a thick green blanket. She looked up at him and smiled widely as he draped it over her. She patted the spot next to her, and he sat down before she moved under his arm and leant against his side. He always enjoyed the times he had with his daughter like this. This was one part of being a father that he would never grow tired of. Though, he could do without a few of the cheesy children's films.

* * *

><p>The next day found the group walking into a small dingy pub called the Leaky Cauldron. The pub was packed with people in robes of all different colours. "Where do we go now?" Tony asked.<p>

Loki solved the problem by walking up to the bar and addressing the bar tender. "Would you be able to grant us access into Diagon Alley?" He asked the man.

"Of course sir." The bar tender said jovially. He moved from behind the bar and led them to a door and into a small enclosed area out the back of the pub. He pulled out his wand and tapped a brick, which wiggled, before disappearing and then more bricks slid away, forming an archway. "Gringotts bank is straight ahead, you may want to stop there first to exchange some currency."

"Thanks for your help." Steve said, before they all past the man and into the bright alley which was lined with various different shops with bright displays. People wearing robes, just like people back in the pub, were everywhere, going from shop to shop. Kysa noticed that many had children her age or older with them.

"Looks like this is a popular day to get school supplies." Natasha said.

"Stay close." Loki said to Kysa.

She nodded and slipped her hand into his, and the group made their way down the alleyway. Kysa, Thor and Loki were the only ones who didn't stare when they reached the bank and saw the goblins.

"Whatever you do, do not smile at the goblins and show your teeth. It is considered a mortal insult to them." Thor warned the group. They were quick to exchange pounds for galleons and then, they were out of the bank. Tony looked ready to burst.

"Well, how about while Kysa gets her school supplies, we all split up?" He suggested hopefully. It was obvious that he wanted to go explore, and he didn't want to adhere to a shopping list.

"May as well. We might get the essentials done quicker if you are not with us." Loki said. "Norns know you would be stopping to gape at every little thing." He then led Kysa down the steps of the bank and back into the hustle and bustle of the alleyway. "Do you have your list?"

"Yes." She nodded, pulling it from her pocket. "Can we go get the books?"

"We can go get the books last. If we go now, we will get nothing else done." He smiled. "Thor would have to come and drag the _both_ of us out of there as we both looked for new books. We will get your other equipment and then your uniform before we go get the school books."

She sighed in disappointment, but nodded, knowing that it was true. She got the cauldron and potions kit, which included a set of crystal vials, a set of brass scales and a telescope before they went to the wand shop. Ollivanders was a musty old shop but both father and daughter could feel the magic tingling in the air.

An old man with large pale eyes stepped out from between the shelves. "Can I help you?" He asked.

Loki placed his hands on Kysa's shoulders. "My daughter Kysa needs her wand." He said.

"Well, we'll see about getting her sorted then." He pulled a tape measure from his pocket. "Hold out your wand arm please." He said.

Kysa held out her right arm and he began measuring her, soon she noticed that Ollivander had moved away and the tape was measuring between her nostrils by itself. He snapped his fingers and the tape dropped to the floor. He pulled a box from the shelf and pulled out the wand. He then handed it to her. Kysa took the wand, only for it to be snatched back.

"No, that won't do at all." He declared. Soon, they were moving through wand after wand. The pile of wands deemed useless for her had grown quite large, before the old man disappeared into the back of the shop, and came back with a very old box. "This might just do it. Maybe. My grandfather made this. And it very nearly cost him his life. As you both probably know, Fenrir is a very temperamental wolf."

Loki raised an eyebrow. "That has some connection to Fenrir?"

"Yes. Elder wood with a core of hair from the tail of a particularly mischievous Kitsune which was sprinkled with what little blood my grandfather managed to get from Fenrir."

"Ah yes, I do remember him growling about some foolish wizard a few years back. I believe that he truly enjoyed tearing his leg off." Loki mused.

"Not the best time for that, dad." Kysa said.

"Well, try it out then." Ollivander said, handing her the wand.

Kysa took it and waved the wand and green and blue sparks emitted from the tip and she felt warmth spread through her fingers.

"It seems we have found you a match. Always remember- the wand choses the wizard. You will not get the same results with another's wand, as you would with your own. That will be nine galleons."

"Go wait by the door." Loki told Kysa softly. "I need to have a few words with him."

"Yes dad." She said, moving to stand out by the door.

Loki pulled out the money needed to buy the wand and placed it on the counter. "I am going to make myself perfectly clear, mortal. If you or your kin _ever_ take anything from mine own without paying for it, as your grandfather tried to do with Fenrir, you will sorely regret it. Understood?" His tone was icy, and his smirk promised pain.

Ollivander gulped and nodded. "Of course. How about a free wand holster? Dragon hide, from the Common Welsh Green?"

Loki nodded and was soon leaving with Kysa and handing her the holster to strap to her wrist. Their next stop was at Madam Malkins. There were two boys around Kysa's age in the shop, one with his father, the other with his mother. The boy with his father had dark messy brown hair, which could be mistaken for black at a distance, or at first glance, which he had obviously inherited from his father. They were paying for their purchases, and Loki watched them carefully, pretty sure already who they were.

"But, she might be here." The boy said excitedly. "Today! Emma might be here today, dad!"

"She might be, or she may come for her school supplies another day, Hadrian. But she will be on the Hogwarts Express."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Albus said she accepted her Hogwarts invitation. And I don't doubt she'll be a Gryffindor. How can _any_ Potter be anything else?"

"I can't wait to see her again. I wonder what she's like. Do you think he would have treated her well?"

"We can only hope. But we'll find out soon."

"She'll be coming home for Christmas too, right dad?"

"Of course." They both left, and Loki fought back the sneer. There was no way Kysa would be spending any holiday with them. They were no longer her family.

Kysa, however, hadn't really noticed the conversation between the Potter men. She had noticed them, and noticed the blonde boy and his mother, who had dark hair with two blonde streaks pulled back. The blonde boy was already on the stool, and had just started having his measurements taken and robes pinned.

"Hogwarts too dear?" A witch asked.

Kysa nodded. "Yes." She said.

"Hop up onto this stool then." The woman smiled. Her name tag said that she was Madam Malkin herself. She began taking measurements.

"Hello, are you in your first year too?" The blonde boy asked.

"Yes, I am." Kysa said. "I'm very excited to be going. From what I've read, the magic taught there is rather different to the magic I've learnt so far. I'm Kysa, by the way, Kysa Lokidottir."

"I'm Draco Malfoy." He replied, and neither noticed his mother tense slightly and look over to where Loki had sat down to wait for his daughter, or how both the witches working on getting their robes ready exchanged glances too. "None of the wizarding families _I_ know have that surname."

"As with all my people, my surname is derived from my father's name." She answered. "It's an old tradition."

"Oh, that would explain it then." But his tone suggested that it didn't explain at all. She knew he was still wondering why he hadn't heard of her family before.

"Draco, be nice." His mother warned.

"I am, mother." Draco said. "But father always says that mud-"

"She is not muggleborn, Draco."

"Oh, right." He said. "So, what house do you expect to be in? I'm bound to be in Slytherin. My entire family has been Slytherin for generations."

"I'm not sure myself." She said. "I know my mother went, but I'm not sure what house she was in."

Draco's voice dropped, so only she and the two witches would hear. "What about your father, what house does he expect you to be in?"

"I expect nothing of my daughter except that she does well in her schooling. I only want what is best for her and her happiness. Any parent who says otherwise is not a good parent at all."

Draco jumped a mile. Kysa grinned. "Good hearing is… a family trait, I guess you could say."

"That's you done." The sales witch finally said to Draco. He hopped down from the stool and he and his mother paid for the uniform and left. Through the window, Kysa could see Mrs Malfoy explaining something in a hurried way to her son, who then looked through the window, back at Kysa, wide eyed.

"Well that went well." She said dryly.

"Is it just the school robes you are looking at?" Madam Malkin asked.

"Perhaps a few things for casual wear." Loki suggested. "Seeing as how we're not sure how appropriate the clothes you wear at home, and the ones for when we visit New York are in your school, Kysa."

"Alright dad." She nodded. The first option she was given, she immediately shot down.

"It's very feminine though. Many young girls your age go for things in this style." The woman said.

"It's pink and it's frilly." Kysa said. "Both are a no go. I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot barge pole, so I most certainly wouldn't wear it."

In the end, they managed to get a few blouses, skirts, jumpers and trousers as well as robes to go over the top of them that Kysa wouldn't burn the moment she left the shop. Those, coupled with her school uniform and the other clothes from the muggle world, and the clothes she wore for training and when there was nothing going on back in Asgard, saw that she would be set for the school term.

Finally, they entered Flourish and Blotts. They grabbed the books on her list first, before either father or daughter allowed themselves to look at the other titles on offer. Kysa had her arms full of books when she all but ran into a girl around her own age.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She said.

"No, I am." The girl said. She and bushy brown hair and brown eyes and, like Kysa, an armful of books. "I should have been looking where I was going."

"Me too really." Kysa grinned. "Hogwarts too, then?"

"Yes, I'm the first witch in my family. I was terribly excited when I found out. And there are so many interesting books to read- I couldn't just settle on only the ones on the book list."

"I know. I mean, the library at home is huge, and has books from all over, but I'm always on the lookout for more material. I get that from my dad."

The girl grinned. "I've never met anyone else my age who likes reading as much as I do. I'm always searching for more knowledge too."

"I'm Kysa by the way."

"Hermione." The girl introduced. "Are you a first or second year?"

"First. You?"

"I'm the same. Do you know any books that might be good reading?"

"Well… it's not so much fun reading but… there are the books on runes. I know it's not studied until later, but Runes really is an integral part of magic. Perhaps they start in second year after easing students into their studies. It can be quite complex, but, as I said, the study of Runes is highly important. If you've never studied runes before, perhaps a book for those just beginning to learn it?"

"You sound like you grew up in the wizarding world, yet at the same time don't know anything about it." Hermione said. She was sharp, having picked up on the fact that Kysa didn't know about the school curriculum.

"I didn't grow up here. My dad and I are sorcerers. But I have the powers of a witch as well."

"How do they differ?"

"Sorcery doesn't really need a foci for one. Every witch and wizard begins with a wand. Very few have become accomplished enough in their talent not to need one at all. Even Merlin preferred to use a staff in his more complicated spell work, rather than without a foci. But, though sorcerers do use staff's sometimes, it really is more to help in battle, as they only really use them as battle instruments, or for the aesthetics. It can also be a lot more subtle, and powerful. There are quite a few spells that are available to us that merely need thoughts to activate, and no incantations or hand movements. Merlin was borderline sorcerer."

"B-but, if even Merlin wasn't completely a sorcerer, then how come he's so important?"

"He's an important _wizard_. Of course, I have heard of a mortal sorcerer who's alive today. I haven't met him…"

"Wait, mortal?"

"Oh, I didn't introduce myself properly, Kysa Lokidottir." She said, hoping this girl wouldn't need it spelt out by her parents as Draco Malfoy had.

Hermione's jaw dropped. "Really? You really are… I thought the Ӕsir were myth."

"I bet that until you got your letter, you thought magic was a myth too, huh? Were you of the impression the Avengers that had powers were mutants or something along those lines?"

She nodded.

Kysa grinned. "Don't worry. You'll pick things up soon enough. Even I'm going into this world blind except for what I've read. It's so different from the non-magical mortal world."

"Do you think that on the journey to school we could perhaps meet up and talk more about magic? You must know so much about it."

"I'm nowhere near as good as my dad. Or grandfather and grandmother, but I think I can teach you about a few things, but no spells. You'll need to master witchcraft first. We're both in the same boat there; I can assure you of that."

"Hermione!" A man's voice called. "It's time to pay and leave!"

"Coming dad!" Hermione called back, before turning back to Kysa. "I have to go. I'll see you on September first."

"See you then." Kysa agreed. It wasn't long after that, but Kysa had grabbed quite a few new books, that she and Loki decided it was probably best to leave, and paid for their purchases and then left to meet up with the others.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: What did you think? **


	4. Discoveries

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Chapter 4

Kysa smiled as she completed packing all her things for school into her large trunk. There were still a couple of weeks until school began, but she thought it would be best to keep everything in one place if she wasn't using it. It would make it easier to pack, without one big rush. Instead of needing to gather everything, she would just need to add her other clothes and non-school books to the trunk. It had been two days since the trip to Diagon Alley, and apparently tomorrow afternoon, they would be joined by her Aunt Jane and her two cousins, Aaric and Amdis. Aaric was one and a half years younger than her, but he didn't look nine and a half. He took after his father, so he was the tallest of the children his age on Asgard already; he had his father's blonde hair and his mothers' brown eyes. He looked to be her age, actually, and it was a common mistake to people on Midgard, who often mistook him as the older of the two. Especially when Amdis was with them. Amdis was almost the carbon copy of a younger Jane, except with her father's blonde hair and blue eyes. She was six years old, and always wanted to be with her older brother and cousin. Not that they minded most of the time, they were both fiercely protective of her.

Kysa was looking forward to seeing them both again. They hadn't been separated long, they never were, but she really had missed their company. Being away at school for months at a time was going to prove difficult for them all. That was for sure.

The door to the room opened and she looked up from where she was sat, cross legged on the floor in-front of her trunk to see her dad.

"Hey dad, what is it?" She asked him.

He closed the door and sat down on the bed. "Come sit by me, Kysa." He sighed. Something was really bothering him. So, she did what he asked and sat beside him on the bed. "You know I love you dearly."

"Of course I do dad."

"Then promise me that you will keep that in mind through what I have to say."

She frowned in confusion, but nodded. "I promise dad."

"I told you that your mother was Sigyn, and that was the truth. What I did not tell you was that while she and I were still betrothed, she broke off the engagement in favour of becoming mortal. She became a mortal child and grew up again on Midgard, as Lily Evans and then learnt the magic of mortal witches and wizards."

"But then, how am I-"

"I am getting to that part. She married a man named James Potter and had two children. Twins, a boy and a girl."

What he was working up to saying was clear in her mind, and she shook her head. "No. No." She said, looking at the wall. "It can't be. I'm your daughter." She had to be! She wasn't mortal for one. She had to be his daughter. How else was she Æsir?

Loki knelt in front of her. "Yes you are. This changes nothing. I promise you that. Because when Sigyn gave you up, and I took you in, I did not just give you my name, and rename you, I blood adopted you. Why do you think I stopped you reading any further on the subject when you found that book in the library?" He pulled up his sleeve and then her own, to show the small scars on the side of both their wrists. One in the shape of the rune 'Hagalz', or disruption, another in the shape of the rune 'Gebo' or partnership and a final scar, in the shape of the rune 'Perth', initiation. "The next page described the cuts needed to be made on both the adoptive parent and the child before the blood that stems from the wounds is allowed to mix while the right incantations are intoned, leaving behind scars. 'Hagalz', to disrupt the original bloodline in order for the new parent or parents to take that position, 'Gebo' to form the connection, and 'Perth' to fully initiate the child into the bloodline. And then, there is the slight addition to the ritual." He moved her wrist so the back of her hand was facing upwards, as was his, revealing the rune 'Eithwaz', defence. "This was something I thought over before I began the ritual. To strengthen it. To protect it. No one can break it now. The story of that one adoption being broken, and the child taken back was true, and I would not take that chance." Loki placed a hand on his daughter's cheek. "You _are_ my daughter, in every way that matters. So I altered the ritual, just slightly. But the change was big enough. Even if they broke any or all of these four runes, the adoption is permanently sealed in your blood. And it only strengthened with time. When you were younger, I could see features in you that were not of me or Sigyn. But you have grown out of them. There is not a trace of James Potter in you. And I even saw him and his son two days ago in the Alley to be able to compare you with them."

"When?" She asked quickly.

"When we went in to buy your uniform, he and Hadrian were there, paying. They were not there long. Why do you think I tried so hard to convince you to go to Salem?"

"So I wouldn't find out?" Her tone was bitter.

"No, I would have told you soon anyway. The original forms that Sigyn tried to get me to sign, for adoption, had the adoption ending when you were eleven. I may have changed it to a permanent adoption without her realising, with the help of magic of course."

"Why did they give me up?"

He sighed. "I really wish you did not have to know this, but I know what it is like, to learn your life is not what you thought… they wanted to concentrate on training and protecting Hadrian."

"They abandoned me in favour of him?" Her voice broke and tears welled up in her eyes. "WHY?!"

"I do not understand it myself either."

"They thought that they could just give me up, and then take me back when they only had to look after me during the holidays?"

"I tried to convince you to not go to Hogwarts because I knew they would try something. They would try to take you away from me. Even in the robe shop, I heard James Potter telling his son that you would be with them at Christmas."

She shook her head. "He thinks he can just become my father again? Well he's not. And he's never going to be," her voice then softened from venomous, "he didn't raise me." She moved forwards and rested her head on his shoulder, her arms wrapping round his neck.

Loki picked her up, and sat back on the bed. "You will always be my daughter, no matter what happens. Remember that," he sighed. "Do you still wish to go to Hogwarts?"

"I'm not going to let them get in the way of my learning. And I hear the library there is huge."

Loki chuckled. "You most certainly are my daughter." He said. "There is no doubting that attitude to books."

They were silent for a while before; "Do you really think they'll try something?"

"I do not doubt it." He replied.

"They won't succeed, will they?" There was a slight tremble in her voice.

"No. They will not. If anything happens, I will find out, and I will set it straight in any way that I can. I promised you years ago that I would protect you, and I always will. Even from the Potters." Loki said. "And I will not be the only one coming to your aid if anything happens. You know that."

"You're sure that there's no way they can purge the adoption- like in that story?"

"Positive. The final rune bound the ritual. I know it has never been done before, but I _know_ I got this right."

They said nothing for a while, and soon Loki realised that Kysa was asleep. He stood carefully, Kysa cradled in his arms and with magic he pulled back the bed covers. He placed her in the bed and tucked her in. There were tear tracks running down her cheeks, so he brushed them away. Loki bent down and kissed her forehead. "Sleep well, little one. Everything will be fine."

He left the room and closed the door carefully behind him. Thor was the only one there, the others having gone out.

"You told her?" Thor asked.

"What gave it away?"

"The angry shout." he answered.

"She deserved to know."

"Is she still going to Hogwarts?"

"Yes."

"Why, brother? You could easily have talked her into going to Salem, or another of the schools on Midgard."

"I know. I do not want her near them, I know they will try something, but at the same time, I want them to see what they lost. I want them to see everything they missed out on and to hurt for even thinking of abandoning her by seeing how happy she is as _my_ daughter." His voice was cold and anger flashed in his eyes. "How they could even think of it… I never understood why. Even though I won from that deal, I want to know why. Finding out the truth hurt her. And I will make them pay for that."

Thor sighed heavily. "I understand brother. She is a wonderful child. You raised her well. I too am both glad Sigyn and her husband gave Kysa up and angry at them. But might it not be wiser to keep her out of their reach?"

"Why? It is not as if they would be successful."

"Kysa has a grandmother and an aunt, yes, but she is getting to the age where she will need a mother. If Sigyn-"

"I hardly doubt she will look at Sigyn like that. She abandoned her. I told Kysa the full truth."

"Loki, you have done well raising her on your own this far, but she will soon be a teenager. And she will be within Sigyn's reach at Hogwarts. Sigyn may have abandoned her, but she is still her mother. Who else will she have to turn to as she goes through teenage life?"

"There will be teachers there and older girls. And she can always write a letter to mother, or Jane, or even Natasha or Pepper." Loki said. "What is all this talk of her needing a mother now Thor? You have not brought the subject up since I first adopted her."

"I am just worried about her. And about you, Loki."

"Me? Why would you-"

"You have not had a serious relationship since Sigyn. If you ask me, the trouble really started when she left. That hurt you more than you let on, and the trouble you caused only really ended when you adopted Kysa. Perhaps it is time you start looking for someone else. Someone who you can love and be loved by in return. Someone who can, at the same time, step into the role of mother for Kysa."

Loki shook his head. "I don't know where you are getting these ideas from Thor. I do not need to look for a wife! And Kysa has plenty of female influences to look up too."

"Look up too. She has role models, not a mother." Thor said. "And I know I am not the only one to worry about this."

"Did Mother put you up to this?"

"She is worried about you. And so is father. They worry about both of you." Thor admitted.

"Just stop, Thor. If I find a woman I could marry, then I will marry her, but if I do not, then that is the end of the matter."

Thor sighed and nodded and left the conversation at that.

* * *

><p>Kysa launched herself at Aaric and Amdis as they both came through the door, and gave them both tight hugs.<p>

"We missed you cousin!" Aaric laughed.

"I missed you too!" She replied, and laughed when Amdis didn't release her and held tight to her around her waist.

Jane smiled at them, and moved past them and into the room where she kissed her husband in greeting, before saying hello to the others.

"What did you get in the mortal wizarding shopping area Kysa?" Amdis asked her, her blue eyes shining with curiosity.

"It's all in my room. Come on, I'll show you what I've got."

"Did you get this wand you required to cast your spells?" Aaric asked as they headed for Kysa's room.

She nodded. "Yes. It has got the core of a Kitsune tail hair coated in the blood of Fenrir, encased in Elder Wood."

They closed the bedroom door behind them and left the adults to it while they caught up.

"It's been so boring without you here for the most part!"

"So this Alley was fun?" Amdis asked. "Did you meet anyone who you will be going to school with?"

"Two. I met a boy named Draco Malfoy and a girl named Hermione Granger, and both will be in the same year as me, though I am not sure whether I will get on with the young Malfoy. He seemed to be weary around me until his mother assured him that I was not one of the 'muggleborns'. I believe he is one of those who believe that if you're lineage is not magical then you should not be allowed to learn magic. That is not someone I would wish to associate with. But, I guess time will tell. He may yet change."

"And this Hermione Granger?"

"She seemed nice enough and she seemed to share my want to learn."

"Another bookworm." Aaric rolled his eyes. Kysa slapped him over the back of his head, before opening her trunk.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please review!**


	5. Late Night Wanderings and Meetings

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Chapter 5

It was later that night, and Amdis had already gone to bed. Kysa and Aaric were in her room, catching up and planning what they could do to get their parents to take them to see as much of this new city as possible.

"Aaric?"

"Yes cousin?" He asked, looking up at her.

"What would you say if I wasn't your cousin by birth?"

"It would not matter to me. You are still my family. Have we not known each other since I was born?" He shrugged. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, yesterday dad… he told me I am blood adopted."

Aaric's eyes widened. "Is that why…?"

"He stopped us reading the book? Yes, it was." She nodded, before falling silent and waiting for his response.

Aaric smiled reassuringly at her. "I do not care. Even if you had simply been adopted I would not care. We are cousins- family. And that is final."

Kysa grinned at her cousin and hugged him.

"Now, what do you say about going out and exploring this city ourselves?"

"At this time? Our parents would never allow it." She grinned, before they both looked at the window. "But, yet again, what they don't know, can't hurt them, right?"

Aaric opened the window and they climbed out onto the fire escape, and slipped down, unseen, into the street below as the sun began to set.

* * *

><p>The werewolf growled when it scented its prey. The two weren't human, so might actually make a better hunt than his usual kills. The girl stepped into the silvery light of the near full moon, and her companion stepped up beside her, both looking round, lost. The werewolf prowled forward on its haunches, waiting for just the right moment. The boy, the larger of the two in build, and obviously the biggest threat, looked in the opposite direction and the wolf pounced.<p>

Kysa nibbled her lower lip nervously. "We are going to be in _so_ much trouble. How did we get lost? Oh no. They will have noticed we have gone by now. Our parents are going to be so mad."

"I know cousin. Do not worry; we will get back to the hotel." Aaric assured her, looking down the street, for some sort of a sign. Before either of them knew what was going on, a blur ran forwards and rammed into them, sending them both flying. Kysa's head struck a wall, and she collapsed, her vision blurring greatly and a wound opening on her forehead.

Aaric saw Kysa lying prone on the floor and climbed to his feet, ignoring the pain in his back. The werewolf loomed over him and howled. It was not the type that fully transformed, but the one that kept most of its human shape, but became coated in a fine layer of fur, grew sharp canines and incisors, and the eyes became that of a wolf, while all of its senses and its strength was increased dramatically. "You will only harm Kysa again when I am dead, wolf. And I assure you that it will be you who is dead before the moon sets this night." He said. Had anyone else been watching who had known who the child was, they would have been reminded of his father greatly in that moment.

Aaric, however, did not get his moment of honour and triumph, as a figure leapt out of the darkness and landed on the wolf's back, driving a gleaming sword through the wolf's heart. The werewolf let out a pained howl as he fell to the ground, arms giving out beneath him, and the fur retracting, and the wolf reverting back to his full human form- stone dead. The figure pulled their sword out of the werewolf's chest, and Aaric saw the glint of silver. He scrutinised the figure carefully.

She was perhaps the same height as his mother, and clothed in a form fitting short leather jacket, with black skinny jeans, combat boots, and a dark coloured head scarf covering her head.

"Who are you? Are you one of Midgard's warriors?" He asked.

"Actually, I'm more of a freelancer." She replied. "Perhaps we should check on your friend."

"Kysa." Aaric said, startled. He ran around the woman, and to his unconscious cousin. "Kysa, wake up, please, cousin."

"Let me see." The woman crouched down beside him and began checking her over. "She should be fine. My flat isn't far. She can sleep in the spare room and I can properly treat her wound."

"I would know your name, first, mercenary."

The woman laughed. "Merc's get paid for what they do. My name is Caia. What about you?"

"Aaric."

"Well then Aaric; let's get you and your cousin inside. Before any other werewolves come sniffing around."

"His pack is here?" Aaric easily picked his slight cousin up. The woman looked briefly surprised, before she shook her head.

"I don't think he had one. But, better be safe than sorry." She led him away, and to a large apartment block, before heading up the fire escape.

"How did you find us in time?"

"I've been tracking that wolf for some time. He's been killing and eating the hearts of innocents for several months now. Someone had to stop him. I sort of made it my job to hunt the things that go bump in the night. Ah, here we are." It was a fourth story window, which was open just enough to slide her hands under, and push it up. She slipped inside, and helped Aaric get Kysa into the flat. She hit the light switch, and Aaric saw a rundown living room that had books on many things that he knew most ordinary mortals didn't believe in.

He put Kysa on the single bed in the spare room and Caia grabbed a first aid kit. She examined Kysa's wound and cleaned it, before stitching it up.

"Good thing she's out of it. Most people aren't fond of getting stitches." Caia said as she placed a bandage over the now sewn up wound. "What were you doing out this late, kid?"

"I'm not a kid."

"How old are you? Eleven?"

"Almost ten."

She raised an eyebrow at him and now Aaric could see that she had startling violet eyes and blonde hair under the dark green head scarf. "Nine? Jeez, where are your parents?"

"We wanted to explore- Kysa and I. We snuck out of the hotel window and climbed down the fire escape. We got lost." He huffed in indignation.

"Well- you are a kid. No nine year old is an adult. Is your cousin nine too?"

"She's eleven."

"She's still a kid too then. Now, perhaps you will think twice about going out this late without an adult? That werewolf would have eaten you alive."

"I am the son of Thor- never would such a fate befall me."

"Pride leads to the downfall of all the best warriors. Remember that." Caia said. Then paused. "Did you just say you were the son of Thor?"

"I did."

"And she is the daughter of…"

"My Uncle Loki."

"I'm dealing with two children of Asgard. I am definitely getting you back to your parents the moment she wakes up. I do not want to be seen as some sort of kidnapper by gods with tempers." Caia sighed, shaking her head.

They both sat back to wait, sometimes talking to pass the time, before Aaric began to drift off to sleep. Caia threw a blanket over him and then left the room, to sleep on her own bed, in her own room, knowing he wouldn't move from his cousin's side. Well, it saved her from sleeping on the sofa.

Kysa groaned as she began to come round. Her head was throbbing. She blinked and the small run down room she was in came into focus. Aaric was by her side in a heartbeat.

"Aaric, where are we? What happened?"

"We were attacked by a werewolf. A freelance warrior by the name of Caia killed him, before he could do any more damage."

"I prefer the term Hunter, actually." A voice said. They both looked up to see Caia. She was now dressed in a leather jacket with a long black skirt that went to her ankles, black boots and the same green head scarf as last night. "How are you feeling?" She asked Kysa.

"I have a splitting headache."

"Well, I'm not sure that I have any pain killers suitable for a young Asgardian, so we had better get you to someone who might. Your parents, perhaps? Where were you staying, I'll drive you there."

That saw them bundled into a small black car and heading along the busy London streets towards the hotel. They had to park a street away, as Caia insisted on seeing them all the way to safety and there were no parking spaces nearby. The two cousins got out of the car when it was parked, nervousness beginning to grip them. They knew that they were going to be in so much trouble.

* * *

><p>"Where could they be?" Jane asked worriedly as they all met up back out front of the hotel. It was mid-afternoon, and there was no sign of the two missing kids.<p>

"I do not know." Loki ground out. "What could have possessed them to leave the hotel? Why did they sneak out like that?"

"Do you honestly believe they snuck out?" Thor asked.

"There was no sign of a struggle- and we would have heard if an intruder had entered. Besides, in a new place for the first time, what would we have done at their age?" Loki pointed out to him. Thor nodded in agreement.

"Alright then, if it were you, where would you have gone?" Bruce asked.

"I don't think we need to keep on looking." Pepper said, pointing.

The group followed her finger to see a woman weaving her way through the people who walked along the pavement, leading the two missing children behind her.

"Thank the Norns!" Thor exclaimed. The three concerned parents all but ran forward to catch their respective children in hugs, before examining them.

"What happened?" Loki asked Kysa, looking at the bandage.

"A werewolf knocked me out. Caia stepped in before anything else could happen though."

He looked up from where he was crouching to the woman who looked like she was contemplating running off. He stood. "Then I owe you my thanks. You saved the life of my daughter, and probably that of my nephew also."

"My brother is correct. We owe you a debt."

She shook her head. "No one owes me anything. I was hunting the thing anyway."

"Yes we do." Jane insisted. "If you hadn't been there, who knows what could have happened?"

Aaric mumbled something about being able to fight, only to be silenced by a glare from both his parents.

"We will be having a long talk of this later." Thor rumbled. "Do not think you have gotten out of trouble just yet."

"And we will be having our own talk, Kysa." Loki said.

Both Kysa and Aaric hung their heads, knowing the trouble they were in.

"I'll just go then."

"We don't even know your full name." Jane said.

"It's Caia Blair. Keep the kids indoors for the rest of the week in the evening, yeah? Until the full moon has passed at least. Just in case wolfy had a pack."

"You must have some drinks with us!" Thor insisted. "It is the least we could do."

"Point breaks right. Come in and have a few drinks. The bar is great." Tony said as the others joined them.

"I couldn't. I really do have to go."

"Please, just a few drinks." Jane insisted.

Caia groaned. "You're twisting my arm… alright, just a few drinks." She said, nodding.

"Great, the bar is this way." Tony turned and led the way inside.

"Do not think because we are not going straight back to the suite that you are getting out of this." Loki said as he guided Kysa into the building as well.

"Yes dad." Kysa mumbled.

Tony had claimed a large round table for them, and the moment she saw them, Amdis launched herself at her brother and hugged him, before doing the same for Kysa.

"Where did you go?" She asked.

"We got lost." Kysa answered.

"How did you get hurt?"

"We were attacked by a werewolf." Aaric told his little sister. "Lady Caia killed the beast before it could harm anyone else any further though."

"So, how were you hunting this big bad wolf?" Tony asked, smirking as they all had a drink in-front of them, with Kysa, Aaric and Amdis having soft drinks instead of alcoholic.

"It's what I do. It's not just the werewolves that like to kill people. I just hunt what people don't believe in that will hurt anyone they can. I just try to stop as many as I can, before too many people get hurt." Caia told them. "Well, I'm going to hazard a guess that, seeing as there are a couple of Asgardians and Iron Man sitting at this table, that I'm sitting with at least half, if not all of the Avengers."

"The second one." Clint said. "Plus friends and family."

"How do you get into the whole superhero thing?"

"Looking to sign up?"

"Oh hell no. I'm a hunter, not a hero."

"Well, if you were not a hunter, we may never have seen Kysa and Aaric again." Loki said. "So I for one am glad at your different career choice."

The group talked for several hours, and they managed to convince Caia to stay for dinner as well. Kysa kept shooting the older woman a smile. She really liked her. She was always what she had imagined her mother would be like if she had one. She was a fighter, but she was kind and she was funny too. She wanted a mother like Caia. With that, they young goddess began to come up with plans to try and get her dad and Caia alone together. She had to see if it would work, right?

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please review!**


End file.
